In a large number of mobile storage systems, mobile storage units are selectively movable with respect to one another in some manner, such as along tracks or rails to which the units are mounted. The units can be moved along the tracks or rails in a manually operated manner, or through the use of a motor operably connected to wheels disposed on the storage unit and rotatably engaged with the rails to enable the storage unit to move with respect to the rails. In those storage units employing an electric motor, upon activation of the motor by a user activated switch, the motor operates a drive system that rotates the wheels of the unit to move the unit along the rails in the desired direction.
On many occasions, a storage system with mobile storage units is located in an enclosed environment in order to protect, or restrict access to, the storage units, which often contain valuable items and/or restricted information. To provide additional protection for such items and information, the enclosed area in which the mobile storage units are located can be locked or otherwise secured in order to restrict access to the information and items located on the mobile storage units. Additionally, the enclosed area may have a regulated environment that assists in preserving the items located in the storage system, such as a humidity-controlled environment for certain types of library or museum artifacts, or a temperature-controlled environment for items that are sensitive to temperature extremes or that must be stored in certain temperature conditions.
However, in a variety of circumstances, due to the location and/or restrictions regarding access to the mobile storage units in enclosed areas, the current environmental conditions within the enclosed area are not readily apparent. Also, for enclosed areas that are environmentally regulated, the access to such areas is necessarily even more limited in order to maintain the regulated environment, which further hinders the observation of the conditions within the enclosed areas. In these situations, the enclosed areas cannot readily be visually monitored in order to determine whether any fire, water, or other damaging environmental conditions exist within the enclosed area. For this reason, a number of well known sensing devices have been developed that can be positioned within an enclosed area, in order to determine whether any environmental conditions exist within the enclosed area that could potentially harm or damage any of the items or information located in the mobile storage units of the mobile storage system within the enclosed area.
The prior art sensing devices, such as fire alarms, smoke alarms, moisture or water sensors, etc., must be installed within the enclosed area and also require installation and maintenance of a separate operating system. This increased cost of adding such systems to monitor an enclosed area often renders such installations cost prohibitive, such that the stored items or information are unprotected. Also, with a number of these sensing devices, the devices must be placed at certain locations within the enclosed area due to structural limitations or other factors that limit that available locations in which the devices can be installed. However, it is often the case that the available locations do not allow the sensing device to adequately sense conditions in those parts of the enclosed area that may have already experienced the adverse conditions, with the resulting detrimental effect on the stored items or information, before the sensing device reports the presence of the adverse conditions.
Therefore, it is desirable to develop a mobile storage system that incorporates sensors on the storage units for sensing various conditions within the immediate area in which the mobile storage unit system is located, in order to provide an indication of such conditions to an individual monitoring the mobile storage system. It is also desirable to develop a mobile storage system that is capable of sending notification signals concerning the detection of one or more hazardous environmental conditions directly to an individual responsible for monitoring the mobile storage system.